Friday, April 16, 2021 at 8:56AM He might be in his mid-30s but Antonio Cairoli is still a world title contender and chasing his tenth world championship. Episode 2 of MX World looks at one of the greatest of all time as he chases one more title to equal Stefan Everts record haul
Friday, April 16, 2021 at 8:49AM
He didn’t win but Cameron McAdoo was the most impressive and talked-about rider after Atlanta 2 due to his immense bravery to come back from a huge crash to take a a seemingly impossible podium in the restart to keep his championship hopes alive. In the press conference McAdoo explained the crash and still racing the main event.
Can you take us through that whole sequence with the crash and then the recovery and how you felt in the early laps of the restart? You were actually leading for a brief bit.
The crash was obviously crazy. I just re-saw it. I hit my leg really, really bad and I couldn’t move it. I was struggling to get my leg back moving. I was doing my best to get up. I was wanting to go back to my bike. I had the medics kind of tell me, “You probably shouldn’t.” I was like, “No. I want to go back.” Then they helped me down the jump. I was telling them stop. But I got back to my bike after they red flagged it and rode back and just told them I want to race, I’m okay. Obviously [Doctor] Bodnar came over and they checked me out thoroughly because they were concerned about my head. I passed all the tests. My bike was mangled, so the mechanics did the best they could. [Laughs] They were taping shrouds on, zip-tying stuff because everything fell apart. My bars were really rolled back and pretty bent, but I didn’t even really realize that so much until I came around the first turn. I don’t think I got the holeshot, but I was leading. It was tough. It was a tough race. About five minutes in when the adrenaline kind of wore off, I really realized how beat up I was. I’m pretty sore now.
You kind of mentioned your leg was hurting before you got restarted. Then your hand looks kind of taped up now. After the race did you get checked out again? Can you talk about what the recovery is going to be like going into Saturday?
I haven’t had my hand checked out yet. It’s pretty big and swollen and it’s sore, obviously. I know I can ride with what I’ve got. I’ve got a pretty beat up leg and my groin is not good. So, we’ve got three, four days to do as much therapy as possible to get back going. I’ll go have x-rays done tomorrow and try and get the swelling out of my hand and my legs and go fight for it on Saturday.
I don’t know if you know this at this point or if you were told after, but Peacock caught you on a hot mic pleading with the AMA guys or whoever it was – I think maybe it was one of the medics on the line to get you back on the gate. You were talking about how Doc Bodnar said you were good. First of all, what did Doc Bodnar say to you? Were you more in a sense where you weren’t sure the rules were going to let you, or if they didn’t think you were physically okay to race?
I got off the track and Bodnar was over there. He asked if I was okay. I told him, “Yeah, I’m okay. I want to race.” I ran back to my bike and he was like, “Okay. Do you know what happened?” I was like, “Yup.” So, I ran back to my bike and then I got back over there. I was like, he let me go. It was kind of a heat of the moment thing. I was wanting them to understand, the medics let me go. Then the medics came back over obviously to actually evaluate me totally. So that was good that they did that too, because I don’t want to put myself in danger going out there if there was something that was not safe for me to race. So obviously as a racer and a competitor, I’m in the heat in the moment. I wanted to do everything I could to get back to the starting line and race. Then they did a bunch of eye tests and all the things they do. I think they were mostly concerned if I might have had a concussion or if my neck was okay, and stuff like that. So, once they approved me, I lined back up.
Your team owner there, Mitch Payton, he’s been renowned for being tough on his riders in the past and that sort of stuff. When you got back to the truck, what did Mitch say to you about digging deep, getting back out there and putting in a performance like you did?
Honestly, I think he was mostly just concerned, making sure that I was okay. My teammate, Seth [Hammaker], had a rough night too. So, he ended up going to the medic rig as well. I think he was mostly concerned for making sure our health was good and stuff. That’s cool because it’s not just the result or grinding it out or whatever. They actually are concerned about our health, too. So, I think once he realized that I’m okay and what’s going on – obviously, I’m going to be banged up. They’re happy I did everything I could to maximize the night on how horrible it could have been. We’re just all happy that I’m okay.
How did the crash happen? Did you hit neutral, just scrub too hard? I don’t know if I ever got clarification on how the actual crash happened.
I’d have to go back to really pick it apart, but I think really what happened was I over-jumped the triple in a little bit, and the pocket to the face of that next double was pretty steep. I think my bike was still compressed and I tried to push through that double while my suspension was still compressed, which obviously gave me the kick over the bars. I think that was just kind of how it went. That was a pretty steep little transition, and I didn’t catch that pocket just perfect. Supercross is obviously gnarly, and you have to respect it.
Wednesday, April 14, 2021 at 8:42PM Don’t give up on this Monster Energy Supercross title chase just yet. Ken Roczen sure isn’t. In a puzzling bounce back, Roczen rebounded from arguably his worst ride of the season with arguably his best, as he dominated the proceedings at the second Atlanta supercross of the season. He was ninth on Saturday.
“Every time we go race, first off, the sport is freaking hard, you know what I mean?” said Roczen in the post-race press conference. “There’s different variables all the time could be track could be bike. We kind of threw a lot at me with the bike, tried to make some changes throughout all three practices, found something that was good and better. But also, at first, it’s unproven until you race it and race good on it. In general Saturday was just a tough one, I was just struggling and couldn’t really do anything on the track. This is not an excuse it just is what it is. Today things turned around. I just never lose hope. You see the points fizzling away but at some point, I have to look away from that. I’ve had some tough times, in general, and at some point, you have to just let go of that as well and regroup. Mostly, I’m just trying not to get over my head and stay calm, even though this win came at just the right time and we really needed it.”
Further helping Kenny’s cause is another sub-par riding night for points leader Cooper Webb, who, like on Saturday, didn’t have race-winning pace and hence lost a few positions after starting up front. On Saturday Webb ended up third, this time he was pushed back to fifth. Webb fought back late and tried to get back into fourth but ended up bumping into the back of Justin Barcia and going down. Eli Tomac snuck by, pushing Webb to sixth. This leaves Roczen 13 points down with three races remaining.
Wednesday, April 14, 2021 at 9:27AM The TM EN300 can rightfully take its place beside anything made it Austria when it comes to off-road capability. It combines an aluminum frame with a modern two-stroke motor incorporating an electronic power valve. It’s also available with or without fuel-injection. Enjoy the sights and sounds of a 2021 TM EN300 as it rages around Glen Helen’s 6-Hour Endurance course.
Monday, April 12, 2021 at 12:54PM 
On this episode of the Dirt Buzz Podcast, my guest is Steve Matthes, Founder and Owner of the Pulp MX Network, Editor-at-Large for Racer X, and freelance contributor to motocross websites and publications worldwide. He is a pioneer in the podcast segment with one of the first dedicated motocross podcasts, the Pulp MX Show, where he’s produced weekly live shows for over ten years. Listen in as we swap stories, and Steve shares how Pulp MX has grown to become a powersports podcast empire from its humble beginning over ten years ago.
Click on Steve's picture to hear podcast
Sunday, April 11, 2021 at 9:23AM The Team Green rider keeps his championship hopes alive.
Image: Octopi Media.
Eli Tomac grabbed the first win of the 2021 Monster Energy Supercross residency in Atlanta after a last-lap pass on Chase Sexton to take his 37th premier class win.
A rain-soaked afternoon in Atlanta left riders with just one timed session for the day, as mother nature let loose near the end of the opening qualifying session, forcing a cancelation of the final rounds of qualifying.
As the rain cleared and the sun came out, racing got underway with Aaron Plessinger (Monster Energy Star Racing Yamaha) launching out to the lead in the 450SX main event. It looked to be all Plessinger as he gapped the field early by over five seconds.
On lap six it all changed for the Yamaha rider when he lost the front end in a corner, dropping him to the ground and back to seventh place. This gifted the lead to Chase Sexton (Team Honda HRC) who looked poised to grab the first 450SX win of his career, leading the next four laps.
Eli Tomac who had recovered from a rough start began to close though, lapping over a second faster than Sexton as the race dwindled down to three laps to go, the defending champion chasing Sexton as the two worked through lap traffic.
With a lap and one corner to go, Sexton caught the back of a lapper, subsequently handing the lead to Tomac who jumped out to a three-second lead and never looked back, taking his 37th career main event win.
Third place went to points leader Cooper Webb (Red Bull KTM), who didn’t quite have the pace to run with the lead group, but will walk away from the round with a 22-point advantage over rival Ken Roczen (Team Honda HRC).
After taking his third heat race win of the season earlier in the night, fourth place went to a hard-charging Jason Anderson (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna). Rookie Dylan Ferrandis took fifth place after a battle with his teammate Plessinger in the closing laps.
Plessinger’s run ended in sixth place after his heart-breaking crash, the Yamaha rider was followed by Red Bull KTM’s Marvin Musquin who put in a solid ride for seventh. Eighth went to Joey Savatgy (Rocky Mountain ATV/MC KTM) who continues to show solid form through the later half of the season.
Championship contender Roczen had a day to forget, a mishap on the start saw him cross the line in 19th after turn one. He managed to get inside the top 10 by halfway, but was never able to mount a charge to pass the riders ahead of him, ending the day in ninth.
10th went to TLD Red Bull GasGas rider Justin Barcia after a horrific crash while leading the heat race resulted in stitches before the main event. Malcolm Stewart ran inside the top 10 for much of the race but ultimately crossed the line in 11th.
Max Anstie had an impressive night, running up from in both the heat race and the early stages of the main event, but unfortunately ending his night in the Alpinestars Medical Unit after a crash early on in the main.
The stage is now set for two more rounds of racing at Atlanta Motor Speedway, with racing continuing Tuesday night for round 14 of the series.
Saturday, April 10, 2021 at 11:33AM
The field is set for this afternoon's racing in Atlanta.
Jason Anderson (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna) and Cameron McAdoo (Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki) topped the opening qualifying sessions from Atlanta, just before rain hit the area cancelling the rest of the timed sessions for the day.
With the threat of rain in the area creating an already abbreviated schedule for round 13 of the Monster Energy Supercross series, riders went into the day thinking they’d get just two chances to learn the track and log their fastest lap.
As the rain started to fall toward the end of the first session, the second sessions were eventually cancelled, leaving the times from the one and only session for each group to determine the line-up for the races this afternoon.
In 450SX action, it was Jason Anderson putting his Rockstar Energy Husqvarna on the top spot with the fastest lap of 1:37.726s. Anderson comes into the weekend searching for his first win of the season after building momentum in the back half of the series.
Second place was 450SX rookie Chase Sexton (Team Honda HRC) who comes into Atlanta looking to rebound from a crash at Arlington 3 that ended his night early. The battle for the third spot was between Monster Energy Star Racing Yamaha teammates Aaron Plessinger and Malcolm Stewart, the duo were the only two riders in the 1:38s range.
Rounding out the top five was Dean Wilson (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna) who continues to have solid pace in the latter half of the season, coming into Atlanta on the back of four consecutive top 10 finishes. Wilson was followed closely by defending champion Eli Tomac (Monster Energy Kawasaki).
Championship contender Ken Roczen (Team Honda HRC) took seventh in the session with his 1:39.312s lap with TLD Red Bull GasGas’ Justin Barcia just behind him in eighth.
Red plate holder Cooper Webb finished the session in ninth place and was the final rider in the 1:39s range. The final spot in the top 10 went to Team Tedder KTM’s Martin Davalos.
In 250SX West action, Cameron McAdoo became the first rider this season to top Justin Cooper in a timed session. McAdoo laying down a 1:39.185 to top Cooper who finished in second. The duo were the only two riders to log laps inside the 1:39s range.
Hunter Lawrence (Team Honda HRC) who sits just six points out of the championship lead, finished the session in third place with a fast time of 1:41.289s.
Veteran Ryan Sipes took fourth place overall after logging his lap in the 250B session. Sipes is making his second appearance in Supercross this season aboard a TLD Red Bull GasGas machine.
Chris Blose took fifth on his privateer GasGas with rookie Seth Hammaker (Monster Energy Pro Circuit Kawasaki) in sixth. Garrett Marchbanks put his ClubMX Yamaha inside the top 10 in seventh overall after the session.
Stilez Robertson (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna) was eighth place with fellow rookie Nate Thrasher in ninth. Kicker Arenacross champion Kyle Peters took the final spot in the top 10 with his 1:42.872s lap.
TLD Red Bull GasGas rider Pierce Brown made his return to action after injury, qualifying in 11th just a few tenths outside of the top 10.
Saturday, April 10, 2021 at 10:01AM
Issue 56 is now live and available for your enjoyment. Explore the world on motorcycles inside Upshift Magazine. Enjoy Issue 56 FREE of charge here: http://bit.ly/2issu56q
Friday, April 9, 2021 at 8:12PM Recently while wondering around a nondiscript industrial park with my wife looking for an exotic wood shop I came across a name that looked familiar. I was able to slip away to investigate and found the office of "Upshiftonline.com". A great bunch of guys producing an online magazine about Adventure riding. I suggest you add them to your regular reading list. High quality content as well as great photos!
MX43
The Year of Jubilee Episode 1
After watching On Any Sunday, a multitude of children, parents, workers and thrill seekers escaped the turmoil of their times on motorcycles. Nothing like that explosion of off-road motorcycle racing in 1971 had been seen ever since, until 2020. Fifty years later, when everyone was told to go home, a new generation discovered the passion of their fathers.
Producer Troy Adamitis and director Nate Scribner, who have created The Great Outdoors, The Moto: Inside the Outdoors, Supercross: Behind the Dream, MX Nation and MX World, have partnered with RIDE Motorcycles to bring you an account of American Motocross’ Year of Jubilee.
We knew that 2020 was going to be a year that people would remember for decades to come. We wanted to capture some of the moments from a year filled with challenge and triumph to inspire the next generation of riders. So, we partnered with Troy Adamitis, the very best story teller and Producer in the industry, to film 2020 and produce a series that we believe will connect with passionate, engaged riders and racers and we hope will inspire new riders to join the sport of motorcycling. We will be creating 3 full episodes and you will see content that represents all of our brands (and others), our teams, athletes and customers.
The title of the video series, A Year of Jubilee, recognizes the a special moment and comes every 50 years. For our sport, the iconic film, On Any Sunday, was released 50 years ago in 1971 and it inspired multiple generations of riders and racers. We hope that Ride Motorcycles can be inspire more people to be outside, enjoying time with family and friends and most of all… enjoying time on a motorcycle. Ride Motorcycles is an action, it is a verb, we want people to go do it. The Year of Jubilee is presented by Ride Motorcycles so we can reach a broader audience beyond our brands, our core customers and connect to new customers.
